Bishop Scicluna on Pope Benedict's mission to safeguard the innocence of children
(Vatican Radio) Bishop Charles Jude Scicluna, auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese
of Malta, served as the “promoter of justice” of the Congregation for the Doctrine
of the Faith until October 2012. He was effectively the prosecutor of the tribunal
of the former Holy Office, whose job it is to investigate what are known as delicta
graviora: the crimes which the Catholic Church considers as being the most serious
of all and include crimes against the Eucharist and against the sanctity of the Sacrament
of Penance, and crimes against the VIth Commandment committed by a cleric against
a person under the age of eighteen.
Bishop Scicluna was in fact the man who
embodied the line of zero tolerance of sexual abuse against minors, adopted by Benedict
XVI.
He supported the Pope’s efforts to change canonical laws and existing
laws and above all, the mentality placing special emphasis on the suffering of abuse
victims and promulgating a series of “emergency” laws.
Speaking to Vatican
radio in the days leading up to Pope Benedict XVIth’s resignation, Bishop Scicluna
reflects on the Pope’s determination to respond adequately to abuse and to safeguard
the innocence of children and young people.
Listen to Bishop Scicluna's
words...
“Pope Benedict
XVIth will certainly be remembered for his extraordinary reply and response to the
very sad phenomenon of sexual abuse of minors by the clergy. He was very active
during the Pontificate of Blessed John Paul II, with the Congregation of the Motu
Proprio Sacramentorum Santitatis Tutela, a universal law of the Church which gave
very precise and detailed procedure on how to respond to sexual abuse of minors. He
also revised this law in 2010 making procedures more flexible and assuring an adequate
response. In his letter to the Church in Ireland in 2010, in his pastoral visits
to the United States, to Malta, to Australia and the United Kingdom he met and showed
great compassion to the victims of abuse. His words will remain with us as a clear
sign of the determination of the Church to respond adequately to abuse and also to
safeguard the innocence of our children and young people”.